1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bill processor usable in a money handling apparatus such as an automatic vending machine, a money exchanger, a money service machine or the like, for distinguishing false bills from genuine bills, and then successively storing bills identified as genuine into a bill stacker.
2. Description of the Related Art
Vending machines, money exchangers and money service machines are generally provided with a bill processor which judges the genuineness of an inserted bill and receives and stores only bills which are judged as genuine.
FIG. 8 is a schematic side view of a conventional bill processor 1 which is mounted to a money handling apparatus (not shown).
The bill processor 1 includes a main body 2 having a substantially L-shaped configuration as seen from one side thereof and a front cover 4 disposed at a lower end part of the front side of the main body 2 in which a bill inserting slit 3 is formed.
On the rear side of the main body 2, there is provided a bill stacker 5 for successively receiving a bill identified as genuine among bills inserted into the main body 2 through the bill inserting slit 3.
The bill stacker 5 is turnably supported at a lower part of the main body 2 by means of a shaft 6 while a lever 9 is turnably supported at an upper part of the main body 2 by means of a shaft 8. A pin 7 is fixedly disposed at an upper part 5a of the bill stacker 5 in such a position that an end part 9a of the lever 9 is turnably brought in engagement with the pin 7. In the normal use of the bill stacker 5, i.e., at the time when the bill stacker 5 successively receives genuine bills, the bill stacker 5 is latched to the main body 2 by engaging the end part 9a of the lever 9 with the pin 7.
A coil spring 10 is provided at another end part of the lever 9 to bias the lever 9 in the clockwise direction as viewed in the drawing, and a cover 11 is provided over an upper surface 5b of the bill stacker 5 to close the upper surface 5b when the bill stacker 5 is latched to the main body 2.
When a predetermined number of bills are stacked in the bill stacker 5, the stacked bills must be taken out from the bill stacker 5, which is usually done by bill collecting persons.
In the bill collecting operation, a bill collecting person first turns the lever 9 in the anti-clockwise direction about the shaft 8 so as to release the bill stacker 5 from the engaged state to the main body 2.
Subsequently, the collecting person turns the bill stacker in the clockwise direction to a position as shown by a phantom line, whereby the upper surface 5b of the bill stacker 5 is uncovered and opened to the outside. Thus, the stacked bills 12 can be taken out from the bill stacker 5 through the upper surface 5b in the upward direction.
In FIG. 8, the bill processor 1 takes an attitude (upstack attitude) in which it is mounted to a money handling apparatus with the bill inserting slit 3 being positioned at the lower end part of the main body 2. In the "upstack attitude", a bill inserted into the main body 2 through the bill inserting slit 3 and is judged genuine is conveyed upward up so as to be stored in the bill stacker 5.
The bill processor 1 may take another attitude (downstack attitude) in which it is turned upside down from the "upstack attitude" so that the bill inserting slit 3 is positioned at the upper end part of the main body 2 as shown in FIG. 9. In the "downstack attitude", a bill inserted into the main body 2 through the bill inserting slit 3 and judged genuine is conveyed downward so as to be stored in the bill stacker 5.
FIG. 9 illustrates the conventional bill processor arranged in the "downstack attitude " in which the bill inserting slit 3 is located at the upper part of the main body 2 and the shaft 6 for turnably supporting the bill stacker 5 is located at the upper part of the main body 2. In the "downstack attitude", to take out the bills stacked in the bill stacker 5, the lever 9 is turned in the clockwise direction about the shaft 8, causing the bill stacker 5 to be released from the engaged state to the main body 2. Subsequently, the bill stacker 5 is turned in the anti-clockwise direction about the shaft 6 to a position as shown by phantom lines in FIG. 9, whereby the lower surface of the bill stacker 5 (i.e., the upper surface 5b of the bill stacker 5 shown in FIG. 8) is uncovered and open to the outside, causing the stacked bills 12 to be taken out of the bill stacker 5 through the lower surface of the bill stacker 5 in the downward direction as shown in the drawing.
With the conventional bill processor 1 constructed in the above-described manner, in the case that the bill processor 1 is mounted to a money handling apparatus in an attitude that the bill inserting slit 3 is located at the upper part of the main body 2 as shown in FIG. 9, i.e., in the "downstack attitude", the stacked bill 12 is taken out from the bill stacker 5 in the downward direction while the lower surface of the bill stacker 5 is kept open to the outside. However, there arises a problem that the stacked bills 12 cannot smoothly collected from the bill stacker 5 because they fall down by their own gravity force immediately after the lower surface of the bill stacker 5 is opened.
To cope with the foregoing problem, a proposal has been made as disclosed in an official gazette of Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Publication No. 62-150456 in which the upper surface of the bill stacker is always opened both in the "upstack attitude" and the "downstack attitude" of the bill processor. However, with the conventional bill processor as disclosed in the official gazette, there arises another problem that when the bill stacker is mounted to the main body of the bill processor by changing the attitude, it is also necessary to changing the up-down position of the bill stacker with respect to the main body having a bill inserting slit, which is complicated and troublesome.